GALAPAGOS WITH KIDS

OVERVIEW

Amazing Animal Encounters: Have you ever shared a bench with a sea lion? Or a pool deck with a marine iguana? Just some of the encounters with the wildlife in Galapagos your kids will love!

Education & Adventure: Your kids will have the opportunity to learn about the environment, nature and the different species through close-up encounters without a teacher or textbooks.

Foster a Love of the Environment: Visiting Galapagos will build a sense of love for the environment, older kids and teenagers can even participate in volunteer conservation projects to help give something back.

Create Memories: An once-in-a-lifetime-vacation for the whole family!

Connect with each other: You will have enough time to bond with your kids, limited access to online entertainment will help.

The Galapagos Islands provide the ideal setting for a family adventure vacation where young people can observe wildlife close-up, explore the marine life by snorkel, and learn about the basics of evolution.

This is just one sample itinerary for a land-based tour, which gives more flexibility for those traveling in the Galapagos with kids, and it allows to discover the amazing wildlife of the islands during day tours. The whole family can enjoy watching an all-star cast of birds, reptiles and mammals in their natural environment as they feed, doze and play around the highlands and coastline of San Cristobal and Santa Cruz Islands. No physical preparation is necessary and all activities will be within reach of each member of the family.

Of course, a tour to the Galapagos islands with older kids can also be on one of the cruise ships, which offer lots of amenities for all the family members. Contact us and we will find the perfect vacation for you!

TOUR FACTORS

Difficulty40%

Adventure70%

Comfort70%

Family friendly90%

ITINERARY:

Landing at around midday at the small airport on Baltra island, meet your naturalist guide who will transfer you to your hotel. From the airport you go by bus for a short distance to the Itabaca Channel. This Channel separates Baltra from the larger island of Santa Cruz. Crossing it by ferry takes about 5 minutes. Now you are on the northern tip of Santa Cruz and have to cross the island by car to reach Puerto Ayora, in the south.On the way, you will go onyour first, exciting expedition: You will venture to the higher part of Santa Cruz to observe giant tortoises roaming free amid thick, green vegetation. Your kids will especially love the photo ops with these famous gentle giants!

After lunch at the ranch and exploring the lava tunels, where legend says the pirates hid their gold, you will head to Puerto Ayora to check-in at the hotel.

On both days, you take a boat to one of the following island: Bartholomew, South Plaza, North Seymour or Santa Fe Island. The uninhabited islands are what makes Galapagos so special: animals that can only be found on these specific islands, endemic plant species, birds that get so close you can almost touch them (please do not though…), and sea lions sleeping in the sun. You will see vast selection of wildlife including blue footed boobies, marine turtles and marine iguanas as well as white-tip reef sharks or Galapagos sharks.

Hotel: Tourist Superior

Meals included: Breakfast | Lunch

* Please note that the actual island visited depends on the schedule authorized by the national park authorities and availability.

In the morning, you will head back to sea in kayaks to explore the unique landscape of nearby Punta Estrada and Divine Bay. As you paddle through towering lava channel walls. Look down and you will see manta rays and white-tipped reef sharks below you in the serene, clear water. You can also paddle right up to the fearless blue-footed boobies, lava gulls, herons, sally light foot crabs, and marine iguanas perched along the cliffs.

Note: Two-seater kayaks are available, so parents can join younger children in the water!

The afternoon is at leisure for you and your family, free to explore Isla Santa Cruz Island as you please. You might like to go to the Charles Darwin Research Station. This not-for-profit organisation has been operating since 1959. It’s great for learning about the local conservation of the unique ecosystems of the Galapagos. It also offers the chance for close-up encounters with giant tortoises, and you can see many newborn and young giant turtles too – they’re here as part of the breeding program to reintroduce the creatures to their natural habitat. Or you can head out to Tortuga Bay beach, which is a short walk away from town (approximately 45 minutes).

In the morning, you head to San Cristobal by public boat (ca. 2hrs.). First stop with your guide: A visit to the Interpretation Center for a quick orientation of the island. Afterwards you head on a lava trail, where you can catch glimpse of blue-footed boobies, iguanas and frigate birds. And you finish the day with a splash at Carola beach, exploring the underwater world snorkeling.

Your second day on San Cristobal island begins with a short boat ride to Isla Lobos (approximately 1 hour or less). This island boasts the second-largest sea lion colony in the world, not to mention the tallest lighthouse around. You will disembark on the islet for an hour long interpreted walk around the island. Afterwards you will be able to snorkel in the protected bay nearby. Following a lunch onboard you will relocate to Ochoa Beach where you can wander the sand, snorkel some more or relax in the sun.